On the authority of Abi al-Abbas Abdillah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with both of them) who said: “One day I was riding (In the narration found in the musnad of Ahmad, it makes clear that he was riding behind the Prophet [peace be upon him] on the same animal) behind the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and he said to me, “O young man, I shall teach you some words [of advice]. Be mindful of Allah and Allah will protect you. Be mindful of Allah and you will find him in front of you. If you ask, ask of Allah. If you seek help, seek help from Allah. Know that if the nation were to gather to benefit you with something, they would not be able to benefit you except with what Allah has already recorded for you. If they were to gather to harm you with something, they would not be able to harm you except with what Allah has already recorded against you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried”.
Recorded by at-Tirmidhi who said: “It is a hasan sahih hadith”.
In a narration other than that of at-Tirmidhee, it states:
“Be mindful of Allah, you will find him in front of you. Know Allah during times of prosperity, He will know you in times of adversity. Know that what has passed you by was never to befall you. And [know that] what has befallen you was never to have passed you by. And know that victory accompanies perseverance, relief accompanies affliction and ease accompanies hardship”
Brief Commentary:
- Du’aa is the essence of ibadah, because it manifests our need for Allah
- If someone doesn’t make a lot of du’aa, it shows a they have a disease in their heart, and signifies a deficiency in their tawheed (Belief in the oneness of Allah)
- A common misconception is that we make du’aa for the hereafter only, when we should be making du’aa for things in the hereafter in addition to things in the dunya
- The less we ask others, and the more we depend on Allah, the stronger our Iman will be
- Imam Ahmad used to say, “Oh Allah, just as you protected my face from prostrating to other than you, then protect it from asking other than you”
- If you constantly ask someone, they will dislike you or get angry, but the more you ask Allah, the more He loves you, and vice versa
- Ibn Rajab said, “How can you ask the poor and unable (humans), and leave the Rich and Able (Allah). This is strange”
- Ibn Rajab said, “Know that asking Allah for things in this life instead of asking His creation, is something that is a must logically and Islamically, and that is from different perspectives. These are:
- When asking someone for help, we are humbling ourselves in front of them, and the act of humility is more befitting in front of Allah, hence it is best to only ask Allah, though asking others for things which they are able to do is not haram
- Asking Allah is a great form of worship and implementation tawheed, as you are manifesting your need for Allah, and His greatness and ability to help you, whereas asking the creation is a great form of oppression, because they are unable to benefit themselves, so how can they benefit you?
- Allah loves to be asked, and He loves to be asked constantly and the insistence in du’aa. The prophet (peace be upon him) used to ask Allah more than once for the same thing
- Constantly asking Allah brings two key benefits:
- You cannot worship Allah without His help and blessings in enabling you to do so, therefore by constantly asking Him, you are completely dependent on Him, so can easily worship Him
- It will help you and comfort you throughout this life and the hereafter, as you cannot go through this life or get to Jannah without the help of Allah
- When we see someone committing a sin, we say “لا حول ولا قوة الا بالله”. This means that there is no strength (in stopping a sin), and no strength (in doing good) except with the help of Allah, so we are realising that we will only be saved from committing this sin and from its effects with the help of Allah, and are asking Allah for that
- Asking the people for help can be split into different categories with differing rulings depending on who you ask and what you ask for. If you ask for:
- Something related to the hereafter: Haram, no matter who you ask
- Something that only Allah possesses e.g. rain, sunshine, knowledge of the future, etc: Haram, no matter who you ask
- Something from the dunya that they are able to help you with e.g. help you to lift something, scientific knowledge, taking you somewhere, etc: Halal, but it is preferred that you ask Allah alone, and He will provide you the means for your help, but if you do ask someone for help, then consider the two points mentioned below
- When asking someone for help, we need to have it in our hearts that this person is a means that Allah has decreed for us, so our main ask was and is Allah
- When asking someone to make du’aa for us, we should intend in our hearts that they benefit too, as when someone makes a du’aa the Angels say “Ameen, and for you is the same”. This is so that we are not very dependent on others, and when we ask them for help, we are also asking them to benefit themselves too
Benefits and Action points to take from this hadith:
- Ask Allah for anything you need, no matter how small it is
- Avoid asking the people for help, but if you do, then intend in your heart that they benefit too from this help, and realise that they are just a means, and your main source of help is Allah
- Do not ask the people for help in things that are exclusive to Allah. Doing so is considered as associating partners with Allah, and is detrimental to a person’s good deeds in the hereafter.
- Maintain the etiquettes of du’aa listed below (taken from IslamQA. For the full article, go to http://www.islamqa.com/en/ref/36902/ ):
- Believe in Tawheed (oneness) with regards to the divinity, Lordship, names and attributes of Allah
- Sincerity towards Allah alone when making the du’aa
- Ask Allah by His most beautiful names
- Praise Allah as He deserves before we begin asking Him
- Send blessings upon the prophet (peace be upon him)
- Face the qiblah
- Raise the hands
- Be certain of Allah’s acceptance of your du’aa
- Ask frequently
- Be firm in you du’aa (do not say O Allah forgive me if you wish)
- Beseeching, humility, hope and fear
- Say the du’aa three times
- Ensure that your food and clothing are good
- Say the du’aa silently and not out loud
Hadith Commentary 